Teens for Peace: In a Divided World, Young Israeli and Palestinian Voices Call for Empathy

Editorial Note: To allow the Palestinian and Israeli teenagers interviewed for this article to speak freely, their real names have been changed to pseudonyms to protect their privacy.

By Idan Yedid

This spring, The Examiner News published multiple articles covering Pleasantville’s controversy concerning the Jacob Burns Film Center and the screening of the documentary October 8. The film exposed the antisemitism that arose out of anti-Israel protests on college campuses following October 7. Jacob Burns’ reluctance to screen the documentary left many Jewish community members upset, particularly because the theater had chosen to showcase No Other Land, a documentary that is critical of Israel and highlights the Palestinian plight.

After the theater finally agreed to show October 8, a box office clerk got into an argument with a Jewish couple as they were buying tickets for the film, allegedly calling them “murderers,” and contributing further to the community’s tension.

Pleasantville’s movie controversy is just one example of the strain that the ongoing war in the Middle East is having on our local community. In my neighboring community of Chappaqua, Muslim and Jewish parents fill Board of Education meetings, raising accusations of bias they say instill fear among their children during the school day. 

We live thousands of miles away from the war in the Middle East, but the infighting in our community often makes it seem as if the conflict originates here.

Teens for Peace

In my work for Teens for Peace in the Middle East, a peacebuilding organization, I have been interviewing Israeli and Palestinian teens who actually live in the middle of the conflict. Here is what they have to say about our best chance to achieve coexistence: Empathy is a repeated theme that emerges from my interviews.

Sixteen-year-old Israeli, Reuven, explains that “both sides are filled with very hurt people who are very vengeful, and very few people are still talking about peace. Very few people are trying to empathize with the other side at all.” 

Manal, a 16-year-old Palestinian, agrees. She says that “on both sides, there are people who don’t understand the other.” 

Tahra, another 16-year-old Palestinian, observes that “lack of empathy comes from people around you, the information around you, and it’s passed down the generations.” This is because each side’s narrative captures feelings of intense national pride and existential fears, causing many Israelis and Palestinians to reject the view of the other. This, in turn, prevents peacemaking.

How does one break this fixed mindset so common among Israelis and Palestinians? The answer, according to the teens, is that they must rebuild trust. Cycles of violence have eroded all trust between Israelis and Palestinians – even more so today, as they approach nearly two years of war. 

“We don’t trust them anymore,” 17-year-old Israeli teenager, Sarit, said of the Palestinians. Yaniv, a 16-year-old Israeli, agrees, saying, “the basic level of trust is gone.” 

While the teenagers acknowledge the current lack of trust, there is hope in their recognition that trust must be rebuilt in order to achieve peace. 

“Our fundamental step should be trusting each other,” Manal states. Even though she thinks this is “impossible at this point,” she still says, “let’s hope for the best and be able to look for a solution.” Sarit agrees, saying that “if we work hard enough to rebuild the trust,” Jews and Arabs could live as neighbors together in peace.

Begins with Education

The Palestinian and Israeli teens all agree that any rebuilding of trust must start with youth education. Matan, a 17-year-old Israeli, firmly believes that education is “the key” to solving the conflict and is “an investment in the long-term” for peace. He also said: “education will show that there are no winners in war.” 

Education ties in directly with the need for empathy. The Israeli and Palestinian teens view education about “the other” as crucial to combating harmful stereotypes that lead to dehumanization and division. 

“I would love to learn about the other side,” said 14-year-old Israeli Ravid, “because I’m living my side [and] I don’t know what’s going on on the other side.”

Manal asks everyone to “be open to knowing about other people and challenge yourself.” 

Taleen, a 16-year-old Armenian Palestinian, and Einat, a 16-year-old Israeli, both participate in joint Israeli-Palestinian educational peace programs focused on coexistence. They both say the interpersonal relationship building that comes out of these programs is the best first step towards establishing trust, creating empathy and ultimately getting closer to peace.

But instead of receiving this much needed education, most Israeli and Palestinian teens are instead exposed to vitriolic and inflammatory media in all forms. Many of the teens see bias and falsehoods in the media, even when it comes from their own side. This, according to Ronen, a 17-year-old Israeli, just “makes the sides hate each other more,” and allows them to “justify cruelty,” Manal said.

Thoughtful Parenting

Finally, Israeli and Palestinian teens make clear that parental influence plays an important role. 

Ravid and Sarit agree with Amin, a 17-year-old Israeli Druze, that when adults teach their children to hate the other, peace will never be achieved. 

“It’s very hard to go against what you were taught your whole life,” Ravid observed. 

Manal said she seems to have more empathy than many others because her parents encouraged her to interact with Jewish Israeli kids from a young age. Einat said she learned about Palestinian history from her parents, which makes her more understanding. 

Here in Northern Westchester, we are thankfully not living through war. But people carry valid anger and passion when it comes to the conflict. It isn’t easy to take a breath and pause the fierce advocacy that has recently occurred in our community. But we should be careful not to create here the same division and hostility that hinders peace between Palestinians and Israelis. 

The way to heal the rifts in our community is evident from the words of the Israeli and Palestinian teens. If they can temporarily set aside their personal narratives in order to empathize with one another, we can do the same. 

There is no other way to achieve what we all want, no matter our views on the conflict: coexistence and peace. 

Idan Yedid, 16, is finishing his junior year at Horace Greeley High School in Chappaqua. He is president of Teens for Peace in the Middle East, a student-led organization connecting Israeli and Palestinian youth through peacebuilding. Idan assumed leadership of the group in 2024, succeeding a former student leader.